I've just had news of Ajahn Brahm's upcoming "Real Dhamma" UK Tour, starting in October this year. Details are as follows:-TUE, 10 OCTOBER 7:00 PM -
9:00 PM
Dhamma Talk: “Cultivating Ethics in a Cybernetic Age"
Venue TBA, London, UK.
WED, 11 OCTOBER 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Dhamma talk: "A Path With a Laugh"
Cross Street Chapel, Manchester, UK.
WED, 11 OCTOBER 7:00 PM - 9:00PM
Dhamma Talk: “Courage and Authenticity at Work"
Friends Meeting House, Manchester, UK.
THUR, 12 OCTOBER 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Dhamma talk: "At Peace With Uncertainty"
Kagyu Samye Dzong, London, UK.
Starting: FRI, 13 OCTOBER 7:00 PM
Non-Residential Weekend Retreat: “Unconditional Mindfulness”
Mary Ward House, London, UK.
The tour is in support of the Anukampa Bhikkhuni Project which aims to promote the teachings and practices of Early Buddhism, through establishing a Bhikkhuni presence in the UK. Their long term aspiration is to develop a monastery for women who wish to train towards full ordination.
Here is an abstract from their latest newsletter........................
ENCOURAGING BEGINNINGS
Since the inspired conception of Anukampa Bhikkhuni Project in Perth, November 2015, joyful steps - often taken in leaps and bounds - are paving the way to make Britain's first bhikkhuni monastery a reality!
Bhikkhuni Canda and and her team are currently organising Ajahn Brahm's second teaching trip to England in consecutive years - a benefit event to build on the significant funds already raised and to further awareness of Anukampa's mission. The tour is entitled "Real Dhamma," because spreading the Dhamma as taught by the Buddha and preserved by the four-fold assembly of bhikkhunis, bhikkhus, laywomen and laymen, lies at the heart of our aspiration and manifests in the compassionate endeavour to increase training opportunities for female monastics.
One of the most uplifting benefits of the project so far has been to witness a dynamic new spiritual community taking shape! People of all nationalifies and from all walks of life have participated, helping us find firm footing. Thanks to them, here are some of our main accomplishments to date:
• February 2016: website (www.anukampaproject.org) gets up and running
• April 2016: ABP becomes a legal entity
• June 2016: ABP's highly active facebook page is born
• October 2016: Ajahn Brahm's unprecedented sell-out UK tour raises around £50,000
• November 2016: Anukampa receives a large, anonymous donation from an overseas supporter, which brings us up to around half the required funds for a modest property.
Fundraising enterprises such as book-selling in Thailand and sponsored head-shaving in Perth (any more takers?!) are ongoing and particularly welcome, as are the increasing number of teaching invitations being extended to Bhikkhuni Canda, by existing Buddhist groups. We are also establishing an "Anukampa Friend's" Dhamma group in London and recently held the second meeting.
On April 12th 2017, Anukampa reached a major milestone, becoming registered as both a religious and an educational charity, which attests to the dedication and commitment of our trustees and key volunteers.
Our immediate next steps focus on building up our team. We recently welcomed a new volunteer book-keeper to assist in our treasury department and are now looking for a webmaster. The services of a lawyer would undoubtedly be very helpful going forward too. We will continue to organise benefit events and also retreats with various monastic teachers. After Ajahn Brahm's 2017 teaching tour, will be looking for more people to help manage the online tour registration system and general administration, working closely with our outreach team.
In the coming year or two, we will experiment with having a temporary base in England for Bhikkhuni Canda and one or two lay guests who will look after her monastic needs. This will enable us to suss out the level of interest in a chosen area, as well as provide a much-needed space from where regular Dhamma talks and discussion groups can be held. When our core team (and accounts!) are mature enough, we will look for suitable properties for the monastery, in a beautiful natural setting. This should be secluded yet not isolated; private yet accessible by public transport. At present, intuition guides us south of and up to an hour and a half from London....but if the right place comes up elsewhere we are open!
(I wonder what they think of the Isle of Wight?)
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